


you smile at me like you'd been waiting

by frevan



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Crack, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Ghost Sex, Ghosts, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Mild Gore, OH LORD, Oral Fixation, Oral Sex, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Paranormal, Pet Names, Smut, chans a ghost ok, honestly little/no angst, honestly theres way more plot than i anticipated im crying, murder mention, pls dont @ me with these pet names, the mildest of the mild, uncut dick PLS dont look at me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-13
Updated: 2017-08-13
Packaged: 2018-12-14 20:09:43
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11790549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frevan/pseuds/frevan
Summary: It’s Saturday and Baekhyun really wishes he had better things to do than travel hours to hang out with a ghost.(au where chanyeol is cursed to haunt a mountain spring and baekhyun's an avid hiker who doesn't mind the hours-long trek)





	you smile at me like you'd been waiting

**Author's Note:**

> Pls enjoy this thing that got way out of hand and has been sitting in my wip folder for too long.
> 
> this is either the best or worst thing ive ever written dont @ me with the nicknames and grossness and fluff and bad smut and lame humor im so ashamed
> 
> title from walk on memories by exo

 

 

There are only two things in Baekhyun’s life that he likes almost as much as singing: hiking and the paranormal.

So when he reads a blog post one Saturday morning about a haunted mountain spring a couple hours outside of Seoul, he doesn’t hesitate to put on his hiking boots, ready his backpack, and wave a hasty goodbye to his roommate Jongdae as he rushes out the door.

He reads and rereads the blog on his phone even though the jostling of the train car is making him a bit nauseous. It’s by someone called D.O ( _what a sucky screen name,_ Baekhyun thinks) and the beginning half features detailed instructions on how to reach the spring. Baekhyun double-checks that he’s on the right train and then turns his attention to the rest of the post.

“I grew up in the town at the base of the mountain, and the legends about the spring are well-known amongst the locals,” writes D.O. “According to them, a man who was scorned by his lover drowned himself in the pool and his ghost haunts it to this day. I’ve been there many times, and I truly believe a ghost does live there. Expect unexplained footsteps, rustling noises, splashes and possibly even laughter if you’re lucky. Now that I’m moving out of town, I don’t want him to miss my company. Go up there and hang out with him. I hope you’ll be new best friends ;) ”

Baekhyun cringes.

 

It’s late spring and he’s more than grateful for the cooling shade of the trees that line the mountain trail. The chirping of cicadas has always been one of his favorite sounds, and he enjoys the background noise while he crunches along the gravelly path. Though it’s uncomfortably warm and Baekhyun can feel the sweat trickling into his ears, he feels peaceful and at ease. The trail is well-maintained and there’s the slightest breeze blowing between the trees. Even if he doesn’t manage to find the ghost, this is definitely still an awesome hike.

He finally reaches the part where the trail flattens out, like D.O said to watch for, and he scans the trees until he finds what looks like a tiny path. Excited, he crouches under a large tree branch and starts through the underbrush. It’s thick and wild––well, as wild as this part of Korea can get––and Baekhyun winces when a thorny plant scratches his ankle. Wearing shorts might have been a mistake.

The faint sound of trickling water reaches his ears and he picks up the pace, heart pounding. Is this it? He hadn’t really expected to find it so easily, but he stops to listen––and yep, that’s definitely the sound of a waterfall. He struggles through bushes and shrubs, t-shirt clinging uncomfortably to his body, until suddenly the vegetation just stops.

Baekhyun finds himself on the edge of a large clearing, branches overhead just thin enough to let in the most delicate rays of sunshine. It seems to be a solid five degrees cooler in here than it was just a second ago––incredibly comfortable compared to the oppressive warm humidity of the trail. But the thing that catches his attention is the crystal-clear pool directly in front of him. It’s by no means a lake––just about the size of a swimming pool, maybe a bit bigger. There’s a rocky outcrop towering above the main pool, and the small waterfall running down it seems to be what’s feeding the pond below. The boulders scattered here and there almost seem to be calling out to Baekhyun to set down his backpack, take off his shoes, and sit on them to dangle his feet in the water.

He’s hopping on one foot in the process of taking off his sock when the air suddenly shifts. It gets the tiniest bit colder and a breeze starts up, ruffling his hair and feeling pleasantly cool on the back of his neck. Baekhyun looks up from his shoelaces to notice a figure sitting on a large rock in the middle of the spring. 

What? He could’ve sworn there was nobody here just a second ago. It looks to be… a man? Yes, definitely a man, wearing a simple-looking light blue hanbok. Even though he’s sitting down, he seems to be quite tall––taller than Baekhyun, that’s for sure. He’s facing away so Baekhyun can’t see his face, but a thrill of fear and excitement runs down his spine. This _has_ to be the ghost that D.O was talking about.

Wait, holy fuck. A real ghost.

Baekhyun blinks a couple of times but the figure’s still there, lounging on the rock casually like he hadn’t just appeared out of thin air. His fingers tingle. There’s a ghost in front of him, not even ten meters away, and he doesn’t know whether to laugh or scream. He decides on something in the middle, throat making an unattractive strangled noise. It’s quiet enough to not elicit a reaction from the ghost.

After what feels like ten minutes but is probably less than five seconds, Baekhyun decides this is kind of awkward. Whoever’s in front of him _must_ know he’s there standing with his mouth hanging open. And Baekhyun definitely is aware of the other’s presence. Despite having watched more horror movies than he can count, something stupid in him decides to call out to the figure. Maybe it’s his sense of adventure, or maybe he just has a death wish. Hopefully this ends well and not with him lying face down in the water.

“E–excuse me?”

That seems to do it. The figure turns around and Baekhyun tenses every muscle in his body, expecting the worst; like maybe bloodshot eyes and no teeth or worms coming out of the nose. He’s fully prepared to book it back down the mountain––god damnit, he should’ve brought some salt, everyone knows ghosts hate salt––

Instead, he’s met with a young and very attractive man. Like, really attractive. Like huge doe eyes, straight nose, full lips kind of attractive. Baekhyun takes a moment to be ashamed that he’s stooped to checking out a _ghost,_ for fuck’s sake, before the figure in front of him breaks out into a toothy grin.

“Hey,” he replies, and _fuck_ his voice is deep and beautiful and sounds like music against the background noise of running water. “Didn’t really expect anyone else to be here. This is kind of my secret spot.”

Baekhyun figures he must look rather ridiculous, standing shell-shocked in one boot and one sock. The ghost obviously expected a response and isn’t getting one, and his eyebrows start to furrow in confusion. Baekhyun figures he needs to say something, so he stupidly settles for “Wow, you’re a ghost.” 

Smooth.

However, to his surprise, the ghost’s eyes widen in shock. “How––how did you know?” he stutters.

Now Baekhyun’s taken aback. “What do you mean? How did I know what?”

“I mean, um, how did you know I’m a ghost? I didn’t tell you.” The figure looks sheepish and scratches the back of his neck.

“Um?” Baekhyun’s in too much shock to really process what’s going on, so he settles for attempting to answer the question. “I mean, it was kind of obvious. You definitely weren’t here when I got here, the air got colder when you showed up, you’re wearing a hanbok, and I’m pretty sure you’re glowing. Did you really not expect me to know you’re a ghost? Were you hoping I’d mistake you for a casual hiker or something?” Yikes, that was kind of sassy. Baekhyun slaps himself mentally, reminding himself that messing up this conversation could land him a spicy curse on his whole bloodline. The sassiness just kind of… happened. He prays desperately that his big mouth doesn’t get him killed, or worse.

However, the ghost doesn’t seem offended, only looking even more embarrassed now. “Something like that. I tried to be subtle. I guess it didn’t really work.”

“It didn’t,” Baekhyun agrees. “Don’t feel bad though. I’m kind of a horror buff so recognizing all the signs of a ghost is pretty easy for me… though I must say ‘sudden unexplained appearance’ is pretty entry-level.” Before he can stop himself, excitement surges past the fear and Baekhyun’s hit with the realization of exactly who, or _what,_ he’s talking to. “This is amazing though!” he blurts, and the figure in front of him blinks in alarm at his sudden outburst. “A real ghost! I didn’t expect the rumors to be true! What’s your name?”

The ghost stands up on the boulder. He really is tall. “Park Chanyeol.”

“Byun Baekhyun. Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise.” 

They bow to each other and Baekhyun looks up to see a smile on Chanyeol’s face. “Hey, I’m curious. How did you find this place?”

Baekhyun pulls out his phone. “Someone made a blog post about it. Here, you can read it. Oh, wait, do you know what a blog is? Or a phone? Oh god, how do I explain hundreds of years of technology to a ghost? Okay, a phone is––”

Chanyeol cuts him off with a wave. “I know what a phone is. And electricity. And cars and airplanes and TV and movies. I may be a ghost but that doesn’t mean I’m stuck in the past.”

Now it’s Baekhyun’s turn to be embarrassed. Luckily Chanyeol looks mostly amused instead of annoyed or offended. “Alright, then,” Baekhyun continues, “I read about this place on a blog. Someone by the name of D.O?” He looks up from the screen to see if the name rings a bell for Chanyeol but realizes that he’s no longer on the rock. A cool breeze tickles his neck again and suddenly––the ghost’s right behind him.

Baekhyun can’t stop himself from yelping and he whips around to see Chanyeol looking just as surprised as he does. “What the fuck? You scared the shit out of me!”

“Sorry, sorry! I forget that people aren’t used to that.” And Chanyeol really does look sincerely apologetic. Baekhyun thinks this might be the least mischievous ghost ever.

He sighs and tries to let the tension drain from his shoulders. “Alright, anyways, here’s the blog post.” As Baekhyun hands the phone to Chanyeol he half-expects it to slip right through his fingers, but his grip seems as strong as any person’s as he holds the phone in a large hand. Chanyeol reads quickly, skimming through most of it before handing it back to Baekhyun.

“Hmm… D.O…” he mutters. “Oh! That must be Kyungsoo!”

“Kyungsoo?”

“Yeah, this kid who used to live in the town. He found this place when he was seven or so and he’s been coming up here every weekend since. He just moved away last week for his job. He told me he was gonna do this––write this post, I mean––but I didn’t expect him to actually go through with it. Said it’d bring people up here so I wouldn’t be bored out of my mind without him.” Chanyeol’s smile turns bittersweet.

“Hey, hey, it’s alright, I’m sure he’ll come back and visit,” Baekhyun reassures. His first instinct is to reach out and pat Chanyeol on the shoulder but decides against it when he realizes he has no idea how Chanyeol’s body (or lack thereof) would react. It also strikes him how weird it is that he’s trying to comfort a ghost that he met literally not five minutes ago.

But Chanyeol’s smile soon turns sunny again. “Thanks, Baek, but you don’t have to reassure me. I’m 256 years old; I know how life works. People change, grow, move, die, whatever. It’s all a part of being human.”

“Hmm… I guess so.” Baekhyun smiles too and doesn’t fail to notice the use of his nickname. It’s kinda nice. Much better than when Jongdae yells it at him from the kitchen. He’ll let it slide. “Wow… 256 though. That’s old. No wonder you’re so wise.”

“Thanks, I try, I guess.” Chanyeol’s smile gets even wider.

They fall into a somewhat awkward silence and Baekhyun realizes he still has one shoe on one foot and one now-muddy sock on the other. 

“Oh, sorry, do you mind if I take these off? The height difference in my legs is kind of uncomfortable.”

Chanyeol waves his hand. “Go right ahead.”

Baekhyun hobbles over to a nice-looking boulder and sits on it, taking off his boot and socks and sighing when his foot is finally free from its sweaty and cramped confines. “Hey, Chanyeol, is it okay if I put my feet in the water?” he calls.

No answer. Baekhyun turns around to find that the ghost is nowhere to be seen. “Chanyeol?” he calls again. “Hey, Chanyeol! Where did you go?” There’s still no reply, but when Baekhyun rubs his eyes in the hopes that maybe the man will be there again when he opens them, he feels an unmistakable chill run down his spine. He’s being watched. Chanyeol’s nowhere to be found, but he’s still _there,_ in some sense of the word that Baekhyun tries not to wrap his head around. Somewhat creeped out and realizing he probably shouldn’t put his feet in the water without permission, he hastily puts his shoes and socks back on, grabs his backpack, and gets ready to leave. He swears he hears a deep chuckle when he trips over a tree root, and raises his middle finger in no direction in particular. “I’ll be back next weekend, asshole!” he calls over his shoulder and this time he definitely hears laughter in return.

 

It’s Saturday and Baekhyun really wishes he had better things to do than travel hours to hang out with a ghost. But here he is, hiking up the mountain and sweating his ass off trying to get to the spring.

“Baek!” Chanyeol calls from atop the large boulder in the center of the pond when Baekhyun stumbles his way into the clearing. Chanyeol looks really excited to see him. Baekhyun’s mostly just surprised that the ghost’s apparently not a figment of his imagination or some weird fever dream he had last week.

“Hey, thanks for ditching me last time,” he teases. Apparently sass is kind of inevitable around Chanyeol.

“Sorry,” he says without looking very sorry at all. “It’s kinda fun to do stuff like that once in awhile. I used to mess with Kyungsoo all the time. I don’t really like _scaring_ people per se, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like the occasional trick.”

Baekhyun can’t really find it in himself to be mad or even annoyed, just interested. “So can you disappear and reappear at will?”

“Yep,” Chanyeol says, suddenly appearing on top of the waterfall. “It’s super fun. Oh, by the way, you can hang out in the water all you like. I don’t mind.”

“Sweet.” Baekhyun wastes no time in stripping off his shoes and socks and running down the muddy slope into the shallow water. It feels incredibly refreshing. “So, do you let everyone do this or am I just special?”

“You’re just special.”

Baekhyun hopes Chanyeol doesn’t notice when he chokes on his own spit. “Wait, really?”

The ghost is squatting on top of another boulder now, looking pensive. “Actually, yeah. I almost never show myself to people, much less let them in here. Last person was Kyungsoo. If people manage to find this place when I don’t want them to, I just creep them out until they leave. One guy tried to pee in here last month.” He grimaces.

“Wow, what’d you do?”

“Cursed his firstborn son.”

Chanyeol manages to keep a straight face for a few seconds but bursts out laughing at Baekhyun’s horrified expression. “Just kidding, just kidding. I can’t do stuff like that.”

Baekhyun lets out a relieved sigh. “Fuck, you scared me.” Chanyeol at least has the decency to look somewhat ashamed, and Baekhyun continues. “… So, um, what _can_ you do, besides teleport?”

Chanyeol shrugs. “Mostly water-related stuff, invisibility, oh, and I can help plants grow.”

Baekhyun glances around and sees an unusual amount of flowering shrubs that he hadn’t noticed before, and some lingering cherry blossoms though it’s way past the season. “That’s why the plants around here look so nice.”

“Yep,” Chanyeol says proudly. “I try to keep this place in good shape. I keep the water clean too. You can drink it.”

Baekhyun shakes his head warily. “Uh… I’m good. I know in the old days fresh water was mostly safe, but nowadays people don’t really drink from streams and stuff.”

“No, really, try it. It’s the cleanest water you’ll ever drink. Trust me.”

Baekhyun still feels a bit skeptical, but it’s way too hard to resist Chanyeol’s eager face. “Alright, I’ll try it I guess. But it’s your fault if I get tapeworms.” 

He wades a bit farther in and scoops some water in his hand, then brings it to his mouth. It’s perfectly cool and fresh, with just a hint of sweetness.

“Wow, this is super good!”

Chanyeol absolutely beams. “See? No mud, parasites, or bacteria. It’s really good for you.”

“Mind if I refill my water bottle?”

“Go for it,” Chanyeol says, looking entirely too pleased with himself.

 

Baekhyun learns a lot about Chanyeol as he sits on a rock, feet in the water. The ghost has some other pretty cool water powers, but can’t leave the spring.

“Why not?”

“I’m cursed to haunt it.”

Hm. That’s the first thing he’s heard about Chanyeol that kind of bothers him. “So you’re stuck here for all eternity?”

“Not exactly. I can leave here if certain conditions are met.”

Baekhyun straightens up excitedly. “What are they? I’ll fulfill them and then you can leave, right?”

Maybe that was the wrong thing to say, judging by the sadness that clouds Chanyeol’s face. “It’s not that simple. I can’t tell you; that’s part of my curse. What I can tell you is that it has to do with the circumstances of my death. If those can be reversed somehow or atoned for, then the curse is broken and I can either move on or stay on Earth for however much longer I want.”

Now Baekhyun’s really curious. “Wait, what do you mean ‘move on’? Where would you go? Heaven? And wait, how did you die?”

The ghost smiles sadly and stands up. “That’s enough questions for today. Maybe next week I’ll tell you.”

“Wait, wait, Chanyeol, don’t––”

But it’s too late; he’s gone as suddenly as he came, no trace left behind except goosebumps on Baekhyun’s skin and the white noise of the waterfall.

 

Baekhyun finds himself looking forward to every Saturday when he can finally see Chanyeol again. He’s glad his roommate doesn’t suspect anything––there’s no reason for him to, since Baekhyun has gone hiking every weekend for months on end. Jongdae just doesn’t need to know that he’s been frequenting one trail in particular.

They don’t really talk about the curse or Chanyeol’s death again––Baekhyun doesn’t want to bring up a sensitive topic if the ghost is unwilling. They mostly talk about Baekhyun: his friends, work, and everyday life. He works a nine to five at a PR firm and plays League in his free time, which is how he met a few of his closest friends.

“What’s League?” Chanyeol asks.

The look in Baekhyun’s eyes is dangerous if Chanyeol’s nervous smile is anything to go by. “Come here, I’ll show you.”

They spend the rest of the afternoon watching videos on Baekhyun’s phone, sitting next to each other cross-legged on the grass. Chanyeol is instantly enraptured. He asks rapid fire questions on logistics and strategy and Baekhyun does his best to answer them, pointing enthusiastically to the screen and even attempting to make diagrams in the dirt. They lean with their backs against a tree and Chanyeol’s hand brushes Baekhyun’s every time he taps the phone to pause and ask a question. His fingers are ice cold.

 

The next time he visits he learns that the ghost loves to hear about the news (“to stay relevant,” Chanyeol says), so they watch news clips together and Baekhyun catches him up on current events. Chanyeol seems particularly interested in science and technology news and makes Baekhyun talk about cloning for a solid hour, the two of them sitting on the plush grass beneath a tree.

“That’s all I know, Yeol, really. I’ll buy you a book on it, okay?” He hopes he doesn’t sound exasperated; he would talk for another hour if he could, just to see Chanyeol’s eyes light up like that. The ghost has a disarming smile.

But the other shakes his head. “What? No, no, I know how expensive books are. Please, don’t go to the trouble.”

“Nah, it’s fine, really. Don’t worry about it.”

“Baek, I know you’ve been eating cup noodles for a week straight. Don’t buy me anything.”

He blushes. “H-how did you know that?”

“Please, don’t spend any money on me,” Chanyeol insists, ignoring Baekhyun’s question.

But Baekhyun won’t give up so easily. “Dude, really, it’s okay,” he insists. “I can’t imagine how bored you get up here when I’m not around. I’ll just get you something cheap, okay? No big deal.”

He turns to his right, prepared to keep convincing Chanyeol, but is caught off guard when he’s suddenly swamped in cool linen robes. 

“Aw, Baek, you’re the best. Thank you so much!” Chanyeol’s hugging him, his breath pleasantly chilly against Baekhyun’s neck. He holds on for an unusually long time. It’s nice, really nice, like maybe top ten hugs Baekhyun’s ever gotten. He tells himself the goosebumps are from the cold.

“Why do you call me Baek all the time?” he asks when Chanyeol finally lets go, trying to divert attention away from how much he enjoyed the hug.

Chanyeol looks a little hurt. “I think it’s cute. Does it bother you? I can stop if you want.”

“No, no! Don’t stop,” Baekhyun insists, perhaps too forcefully. Chanyeol’s look of surprise at the outburst shifts into something a little more… smug. Baekhyun crosses his arms and looks away from Chanyeol and into his lap, even more embarrassed. He figures he’s done enough damage and should probably stop talking.

Chanyeol crosses his arms too and looks out at the spring. “Baekkie,” he coos absentmindedly under his breath. Baekhyun pretends not to hear.

That evening he goes to the bookstore and buys the most expensive book on cloning he can find. He’s never gone hiking on a Sunday but figures it’s worth it when he sees Chanyeol’s surprised face melt into sheer delight as he pulls the book out of his backpack.

 

It’s on his fifth visit to the spring that Baekhyun’s struck by something. Being with Chanyeol is easy, even effortless––he’s like an old friend Baekhyun never had. They’re watching Youtube and it isn’t until his head is pillowed on a soft thigh that he realizes what he’s doing. Startled, he makes to sit up, hoping he hasn’t crossed a line, but a gentle hand keeps him down.

“It’s okay, you can lie on me,” Chanyeol says softly, and it takes a few moments, but Baekhyun manages to relax and lay back down. They watch the video for several more minutes, and when it ends Baekhyun’s the first to speak up.

“You know, I didn’t do this with Jongdae until I’d known him for four months.”

“Do what?”

Baekhyun gestures vaguely. “This. Lie on him.”

“Oh.”

“I’m not a naturally touchy person. Not really. Wait, actually, that’s a lie, I totally am, but normally I have to know someone well first. I feel like I know you already. You’re just weirdly easy to be with.” He doesn’t know why he’s telling Chanyeol all of this. It almost feels too personal. But when he looks up into Chanyeol’s face, a soft smile greets him and Baekhyun’s glad he said it.

Chanyeol doesn’t have any body heat, in fact he’s rather cold, but it’s perfect for the sweltering heat of summer when the fingers through his hair feel like heaven.

 

It isn’t until a few weeks later that Baekhyun finally feels confident enough to bring up the curse again. They’re watching a Tasty video, his head on Chanyeol’s shoulder, when he decides to break the ice.

“Hey, Yeol?”

“Mmm?” His voice rumbles deep through his chest and Baekhyun feels some type of way. He tries to tamp down his thirst and continue. Chanyeol is his ghost friend who happens to be extremely hot. Nothing more.

“Um, I know you may not wanna talk about this, and feel totally free to tell me to shut up, but… would you be okay with telling me about how you died?”

Chanyeol instantly stiffens and Baekhyun thinks he may have ruined the tranquil mood, is about to stutter out an apology, until Chanyeol clears his throat and says, “No, it’s okay, I’ll tell you.”

Baekhyun sits up. “Really, it’s okay, you don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“I want to.” Chanyeol’s gaze is piercing, intense, and Baekhyun’s throat goes dry.

“Um, okay.”

The ghost runs a hand through his hair and sighs, then looks at Baekhyun with determination. “What have you heard? I’m sure you’ve heard some rumors.”

“Yeah, that you drowned yourself here.”

“That’s the story I told Kyungsoo to spread. My real story might attract too much attention. I don’t want this to become a tourist spot.” Baekhyun just waits patiently as Chanyeol works up the courage to continue. Finally, he speaks again.

“I had a lover. We were friends for a long time and I finally admitted my feelings to him; I was twenty-one, he was twenty-three. He said he loved me back. We started seeing each other, in secret of course. The first night we slept together was the eve of his wedding to the daughter of an important local family. They had a child together,” Chanyeol’s voice breaks and Baekhyun puts an arm around his shoulder, “... b-but of course we didn’t stop. I know he was disgusted by me and even more disgusted by himself. He hated everything about our arrangement but didn’t have the courage to call it off. One day his wife found out and threatened to tell the entire village. He took me up here, to this place, I thought to break up with me.” 

Chanyeol’s voice breaks again and it’s second nature for Baekhyun rub his shoulder soothingly.

“He killed me. Right here. Drowned me in a meter of water. He was strong, so so strong and taller than me. Hit me in the head with a rock right here.” And to Baekhyun’s horror, Chanyeol lifts up part of his hair in the back of his head and Baekhyun can see an ugly-looking wound, still dripping blood.

Baekhyun can barely speak above a whisper. Chanyeol was _murdered_ here. Somebody _killed_ him. “What happened then?”

“I woke up; he was gone and I was here. I knew I was dead instantly. Everything felt different; there was no pain, but everything was freezing cold. I’ve been here ever since.”

“And what happened to him?”

Chanyeol laughs humorlessly. “He went on with his life. For a while I tried to curse him. I spent every moment hating him and wishing he was dead. Eventually I realized the only person I was hurting was myself. It took me almost a hundred years, but I forgave him.”

Baekhyun’s astonished. “You _forgave_ him? For murdering you? He took your life! How could you forgive him?”

When Chanyeol turns to Baekhyun his eyes are flooded with a mix of emotions that are impossible to decipher. “I learned that hatred doesn’t do anyone any good. He had his reasons and his circumstances for doing what he did, and even though it wasn’t right, something drove him to that point. People are shaped by things beyond anyone’s control. He was a victim just as much as I was.”

“Still, though… he killed you in cold blood.”

He chuckles darkly. “Why do you think it took me a hundred years to forgive him? It definitely wasn’t an easy thing to do.”

Baekhyun nods slowly, getting the feeling that he’s just accessed an entire facet of Chanyeol he’d only ever glimpsed before. He doesn’t know what to say, besides “I can’t imagine.” He really can’t. He’d had boyfriends before, been through what he considers nasty breakups but can’t fathom that level of betrayal.

Chanyeol shushes him then, taking Baekhyun’s slender hand in his own. That’s a first. “Then don’t. I’m fine now.” He plays with Baekhyun’s fingers until the other is blushing, the touch feeling pleasantly cold. “Everything’s alright.”

They stay like that for a minute until Chanyeol suddenly chuckles to himself.

Baekhyun looks up from where their hands are joined. “What?”

“The real story’s way more exciting than the suicide one, huh?”

“Oh, yeah, for sure,” Baekhyun says with a smile. “I can see why Kyungsoo spread the fake one.”

“Can you imagine? I’d probably have a shrine here by now. Gay kids all over Korea would come here asking for my blessing.”

They both laugh in earnest at that, Chanyeol squeezing Baekhyun’s hand gently. He releases his grip for one disappointing moment before bringing it up to card his fingers once through Baekhyun’s hair, a gentle smile on his face. Baekhyun realizes he’s never touched Chanyeol’s hair, probably because of the wound. It looks soft.

He slowly brings his hand up to Chanyeol’s head. “Do you mind?” he asks timidly and Chanyeol shakes his head before turning it obligingly. Fingers part black hair until the wound is visible, gaping and oozing. It’s horrific and Baekhyun wants desperately to make it better.

“Does it hurt?”

“It used to _itch._ Drove me nuts for a while. But as I came to forgiveness it started to get less and less. It doesn’t feel like anything now.”

“That’s good,” he says rather stupidly. What he really means is Chanyeol’s good. Really good. Way too good for this earth, actually. Maybe one of the best people Baekhyun’s ever met. He’s kind, patient, and beautiful and Baekhyun can’t help the sudden rush of affection that courses through him. God, he really wants to––

He brushes down the hair and leans up without thinking, mouth and nose touching the top of Chanyeol’s head where he’s unwounded. He smells like rain and fresh earth mixed with a little bit of musk, perhaps a remnant of his humanity, and god if that smell doesn’t _do_ things to Baekhyun. He gets even closer, kissing the top of Chanyeol’s head, knowing he’s being bold but not really having it in himself to care.

They’re still sitting next to each other with Chanyeol’s head turned so Baekhyun can’t see his face, but judging by the way he sighs contentedly, he doesn’t seem bothered at all. Baekhyun pulls away, kind of surprised at himself, and Chanyeol turns and looks at him with dark, hungry eyes. Goosebumps crawl up his skin.

“Baek…”

“Um, you smell good.” He kind of hates that that’s the best he can come up with right now but it seems to work on Chanyeol, whose face darkens even further. He leans in, tantalizingly close, and his breath is cool and sweet against Baekhyun’s cheek.

He’s trying to mentally prepare himself to be kissed by a ghost, of all things, and wonders distantly how the hell his life came to this point, when Chanyeol pulls away with a chuckle.

“Baek, you’re so cute,” he laughs, doing nothing to calm Baekhyun’s racing heart.

“What? Weren’t you gonna kiss me?” Baekhyun complains, definitely annoyed.

Chanyeol looks surprised now. “Would you want me to?”

Now Baekhyun’s _very_ annoyed. “Um, yeah?”

“Aw, you look even cuter when you’re pouting,” Chanyeol coos and Baekhyun doesn’t know how this could get any more embarrassing. The other is standing up now, brushing off his hanbok and making his way towards the water. “Come back next week and I’ll see what I can do.”

And with that, Chanyeol’s gone and Baekhyun’s left with sweaty palms and the sad realization that he has a crush on a fucking ghost.

 

A week has never dragged on quite like this one has and Baekhyun’s half-relieved, half-nervous when he finally reaches the spring on Saturday morning. It’s now the height of summer and he’s drenched in sweat, shirt clinging to every inch of his body and shorts chafing his thighs. Hopefully Chanyeol doesn’t mind his grossness. He’s a bit worried though; will things be awkward, or will they act the same around each other? Will Chanyeol initiate? Maybe he forgot already. Looking around the clearing, Baekhyun spots the ghost on his favorite boulder, already standing up in excitement.

“Baekhyun!”

“Chanyeol, hi!”

Before he can even blink, Chanyeol’s right in front of him, eyes wide and shining in a way that Baekhyun can’t quite decipher. “Hey, so I was thinking this past week…”

Oh. Oh no. Chanyeol definitely doesn’t wanna make out with him anymore. It was just a spur-of-the-moment thing. Alright. That’s fine.

“ … I really wanna watch more of those red-hot-glowing 1000 degree knife videos. Can we watch them today? I’ve been looking forward to this since Monday!”

“Um.”

Chanyeol’s face falls suddenly. “Oh, did you not like those? That’s okay, we can watch something else if you want.”

And really, how can he say no? “It’s fine, I love those. Let’s watch them right now.”

 

They’re twenty minutes into 1000 degree knife videos and chill and Baekhyun really kind of wanted more action than the usual head-on-the-shoulder deal. At least Chanyeol’s hand feels really good against his sweaty forehead. The other laughs suddenly at the knife cutting viciously through a squeaky toy and _fuck_ Baekhyun really wants to kiss that stupid smile right off his face.

“Haha, that was awesome! That rubber duck just––” Chanyeol makes an explosion noise and reaches down to click on the next video. This one features a Rubix Cube. Great. 

It’s not that he doesn’t love watching videos with Chanyeol––in fact, seeing the other so happy and passionate is probably one of his favorite things ever (he’s been abandoning League. It’s kind of unhealthy). It’s just that Chanyeol is beyond gorgeous, funny, kind, and smart and Baekhyun’s so _fucked._ He might have to make the first move, risk ruining their friendship, but Chanyeol seemed so enthusiastic last week that he can’t imagine things going that badly. With his head on Chanyeol’s shoulder, it would be so easy to just turn his head and––

Before he can overthink it, he puts his lips oh-so-gently on Chanyeol’s neck and feels the other instantly tense beneath him.

“Baek, what’re you…”

“Is this okay?”

Chanyeol takes a moment, then nods, making a strangled sound in the back of his throat. It would be funny if Baekhyun wasn’t so tense. He just shushes Chanyeol gently, lips skimming across the cool expanse of skin. “Just watch the video.”

“O-okay.”

Baekhyun’s nervous, of course he is, but he tries not to let it show as he continues by pressing his lips slightly harder and reveling in the gasp it earns him. Deciding to take it one step further, he brushes them gently up and down the long, long length of Chanyeol’s neck. It isn’t until he starts to kiss in earnest, lips moving and tongue peeking out, that Chanyeol finally lets out a quiet hum. He moves his hand to Baekhyun’s thigh and starts stroking the bare skin, and it must feel so warm and nice under his palm. Baekhyun wonders how long it’s been since Chanyeol’s felt warm.

He notices that Chanyeol is still watching the video diligently, but his eyes are definitely out of focus and his hand is still rubbing Baekhyun’s thigh. There’s about a minute of the video left and he takes it upon himself to attempt to suck a hickey right under Chanyeol’s collarbone, pulling at the folds of his robes to gain more access. He wonders if Chanyeol can bruise.

As soon as the video ends Chanyeol sets the phone down gently on a patch of grass and wastes no time in pulling Baekhyun into his lap. He’s strong and manhandles the smaller with ease, setting Baekhyun’s nerves alight. He only has time to make a small noise of pleasure before they’re kissing, Chanyeol’s lips on his and hands wrapping around his waist.

Chanyeol’s lips are so soft, and cold of course, which is the first thing Baekhyun notices. Everything about him is cold but it’s extremely refreshing and Baekhyun can’t get enough. They’re kissing gently, even a bit nervously, but it’s not timid, and a gentle hand on his lower back reassures him that Chanyeol wants this as much as he does. _Chanyeol._ He’s kissing _Chanyeol._ The thought overwhelms him and before he can stop himself, he deepens the kiss and parts his lips in earnest, sucking on Chanyeol’s bottom lip and coaxing out a quiet moan and _damn_ if that isn’t the best noise Baekhyun’s heard in his life. He brings his hands up around the other’s shoulders and revels in the strong flex of muscle he feels beneath his fingertips, tangible even through the too-thick layers of hanbok. Chanyeol’s hands are on Baekhyun’s waist now, gripping him gently and toying with the hem of his t-shirt. It’s maddening, straddling Chanyeol like this and listening to his quiet sighs of pleasure. Baekhyun hopes that _for once_ he’s not blushing.

They kiss for what feels like an eternity until Baekhyun suddenly feels the ground come up behind him and he lands on pillow-soft grass. Chanyeol is on top of him now, mouthing at his neck and _finally_ slipping his hands underneath Baekhyun’s shirt. The cold is initially shocking on his warm stomach and he can’t help but gasp at the sensation. He can feel Chanyeol marking underneath his ear and really should say something, but _fuck_ that feels good and he has no one to impress. Wait, when did that happen? When did Baekhyun stop trying to pick up guys?

He pushes that thought to the back of his mind and rolls them both over. Chanyeol thumps down on the grass, hair splayed out like a halo, eyes sparkling and breathing hard. The sun hits his face perfectly, illuminating his translucent skin that’s definitely not quite human but is beautiful all the same. Probably more so. They lock eyes and Chanyeol smiles toothily, looking as amazed as Baekhyun feels. Baekhyun’s suddenly not horny anymore, just kind of awestruck. He leans down and watches Chanyeol’s eyes flutter closed in anticipation before pressing a kiss to the other’s cheek.

It’s sweet––too sweet, but Baekhyun doesn’t really mind.

 

“You’re late today,” Jongdae calls from the kitchen. 

Baekhyun sets his backpack on the floor with a thump before kicking off his boots. “Yeah, sorry, I… uh…”

His roommate comes into the living room wearing an apron and holding _two_ (god bless him) bowls of kimchi fried rice. “What happened? Lose track of time?”

Baekhyun’s grateful for the easy out. “Yeah, something like that.”

“Wait wait wait, what’s on your neck? Is that… a hickey?”

Okay, maybe not so easy. Jongdae steps closer and squints, then lets out a screech. “It so is! Baekhyun!”

He tries to answer Jongdae’s prying questions around mouthfuls of fried rice and insists that he has in fact been hiking every Saturday––he just avoids mentioning that he’s only hiked one trail for weeks. By the end of the conversation, Baekhyun somehow manages to convince his roommate that he met a hot stranger on the trail and hooked up with them in the woods.

Jongdae clears both their plates and goes to set them in the sink. “You’re nasty,” he calls behind him with no malice in his voice. If anything, he sounds impressed. Baekhyun’s just impressed he bought it.

That night he dreams of big hands and cold lips and knows he’s in trouble.

 

It’s really hot. The news said this was scheduled to be the hottest day of the summer and by the time Baekhyun makes it to the spring he feels close to death. Maybe if he died near the spring he could haunt it with Chanyeol. The thought doesn’t scare Baekhyun as much as he thinks it should.

But Chanyeol’s nowhere to be found. It’s not that he isn’t _there_ ––he always is, somehow, even if Baekhyun can’t see him. No, he’s definitely still around, just hiding. Baekhyun’s not really in the mood for Chanyeol to be hiding. He’s exhausted and sweaty and gross and doesn’t have the energy to mess with weird ghost shenanigans.

“Chanyeol,” he whines. There’s no answer. “Yeollie,” he tries louder. Still no luck.

Now he’s genuinely annoyed. “Chanyeol, you probably can’t tell but it’s hot as balls. Come out and cool me off, please?” he begs, opening his arms to the air.

Now this is getting weird. Chanyeol usually shows up with enough persuasion, but there’s still no sign of him. Baekhyun’s not worried though, he can feel the ghost’s presence and everything seems fine with him, if the lively rushing of the water and gentle swaying of plants is any indication. Come to think of it, he doesn’t even know what could possibly cause Chanyeol any danger, besides Satan or something.

“Fine, I’m going in the water. Hope you don’t mind.”

The only response he gets is a mischievous laugh that he can barely make out over the sound of the waterfall. Baekhyun takes off his shoes and socks, then realizes suddenly that if he wants to swim he’ll have to take off substantially more clothing. There’s no way he’s getting by with just wading in the water in this heat. Swimming in his clothes is not an option; it’s way too humid and Baekhyun doesn’t want his skin to chafe off walking back down the mountain in wet clothes.

There’s basically only one option left. He takes off his shirt and shorts, leaving him totally naked. What a stellar fucking day to not wear underwear. He curses Jongdae for hogging the washing machine last night––even his bunny underwear would’ve been preferable to this. He wonders if Chanyeol can see him. Scratch that, if he can hear him, Chanyeol can definitely see him too. The thought makes heat pool in Baekhyun’s cheeks.

He wastes no time getting into the water, partly out of modestly and partly to escape the heat, and holy fuck does it feel good. It’s the perfect temperature––cold but not too cold––and Baekhyun shivers in relief. He wades out deeper until he can just barely touch the bottom, then swims around for a bit, enjoying himself thoroughly. Why hadn’t he done this before? Oh, right, clothes. He soon tires, still worn out from his hike, and he returns to the shallower water to just stand around and take in the scenery.

He’s about chest-deep now, preoccupied with watching the tiny waves that break the surface of the water, when he feels a tingling sensation in his skin. His first reaction is alarm, but he begins to relax once he realizes that it feels good. Beyond good. It’s like a massage but better, all his muscles unwinding completely and leaving him feeling weightless as the water flows across his body. No doubt this is some weird ghost stuff that Chanyeol’s pulling, but Baekhyun is only grateful for whatever the other is doing. He lets out a soft moan as the current brushes against his thighs, feeling heavenly on his sore muscles.

The sensation spreads from his arms to his core, and Baekhyun realizes with a start that he’s kind of hard. He tries to will his boner down, because how fucking embarrassing is it that he’s turned on from a water massage, but it’s really not working at all and Chanyeol’s freaky magic is not doing anything to calm the situation. In fact it’s making things worse, the current dancing on the sensitive skin of his chest and dipping lower and lower and––

Baekhyun swears he feels a hand wrap around his half-hard cock and _stroke._ But when he looks down there’s nothing there. He groans and Chanyeol laughs softly in his ear and does it again, pumping his hand painfully slowly and setting Baekhyun on edge. There’s still nobody there that Baekhyun can see, but he can certainly feel Chanyeol’s hand firm on his cock, thumb swiping over the head causing Baekhyun to whine softly. He thinks back to when they first met, when he had been pegged Chanyeol as not a particularly mischievous ghost, and almost laughs out loud. The hand continues and he feels lips on the back of his neck––Chanyeol’s behind him, securing his free hand around Baekhyun’s hip and mouthing at the join of his neck and shoulder.

“Ah, Yeol, no marks,” he warns, and the ghost backs off obligingly, choosing to pepper light kisses under Baekhyun’s ear instead with a pleased hum. The hand on his erection is still moving far too slow for his liking and Baekhyun attempts to speed things up by thrusting, but Chanyeol’s strong hold on his hip prevents it. He tries again and the grip tightens further, and fuck does Baekhyun hope it bruises. He gives up with a whine and Chanyeol seems to like that, snickering in Baekhyun’s ear before tugging at the lobe with his teeth. The hand gradually speeds up until Baekhyun’s wracked with desperation, embarrassingly close already; he needs to see Chanyeol, yearns to watch the hand on his cock and feel the strong body behind him.

“Chanyeol, let me see you,” he begs.

“Hmm… nah.”

“Oh fuck Chanyeol, please––” he’s cut off abruptly by a finger digging into his slit and tries not to sob.

“But you look so pretty by yourself, I feel like I would just ruin it,” Chanyeol muses.

Baekhyun’s far from amused. “God dammit, just… shit–– _please_?”

Chanyeol takes a moment to think and Baekhyun’s about to say something else when the other concedes with an “alright, alright, bossy.”

Baekhyun looks down to see a hand wrapped around him, the other still on his hip, and the sight has his balls tightening with need. Fuck, Chanyeol’s hand is so big and Baekhyun can’t help but imagine those fingers in his ass, working him open roughly and sloppily. He hasn’t seen Chanyeol’s dick but he really fucking wants to, imagines it’s so pretty and thick and would fit perfectly in his mouth, choke him until he can’t breathe. He’s close now, doesn’t know if he should warn Chanyeol or just come in the water, but the other seems to sense his hesitation and encourages him, whispering, “it’s alright, it’s alright, come for me Baek, you’re so hot, fuck––”

Chanyeol seems to lose some of his self-control then and Baekhyun feels the other’s hard length brush against his ass, and the stimulation is too much. Fuck, he wants that in his ass right now, wants to come clenching around Chanyeol and kissing him and making him come too––wants Chanyeol to come inside him, to fill him up. He grinds back against Chanyeol and feels his own cock swell, and before he knows it he’s coming with a broken moan. It’s beyond incredible; stars burst behind his eyelids and he can feel every hair on his body stand on end. Baekhyun can’t remember the last time he’s come this hard. More ghost magic? Probably. Chanyeol’s hand doesn’t let up, working him through it until he feels like his knees are about to give out. It’s not until they actually do that the other finally stops, holding Baekhyun up and kissing his shoulder tenderly.

He feels absolutely boneless. Some distant part of him is freaked out that he just got a handjob from a ghost but the rest of him is elated. He got a handjob from _Chanyeol,_ one of the hottest, sweetest, dorkiest guys Baekhyun’s ever met, whom he has a monster crush on, whom he lo––

Oh, who’s still hard behind him. He can feel the thick length of Chanyeol’s erection pressing into his lower back. Baekhyun squirms a bit and the other releases him, and he turns to see Chanyeol (for the first time today, which he realizes is kinda weird) looking at him with… hesitation?

“Was that okay?” the other asks, suddenly shy.

Baekhyun melts. “That was great. Really. I haven’t come that hard in a long time.”

Chanyeol perks up. “Really?”

“Really really. Now do you want me to help with that or not?”

“Uh… if you don’t mind?” If Chanyeol wasn’t a ghost, Baekhyun’s sure he’d be blushing.

Baekhyun takes his hand and leads him out of the water, finding a soft-looking patch of grass and pushing the other down gently. He kneels in front of him, taking a moment to appreciate the long, lean lines of Chanyeol’s body, the firm abs, prominent collarbones, and hard, leaking cock on display. He feels his mouth water. Chanyeol is looking at Baekhyun too, eyes wide and shining with anticipation.

“Can I suck you off?”

Chanyeol nods enthusiastically.

Baekhyun lies down between his spread legs, spreading them wider in the process, and brings his mouth to a pale thigh, kissing gently. It’s obvious Chanyeol is impatient––if his low whines are anything to go by––but Baekhyun’s determined to do this right. He kisses slowly up Chanyeol’s thigh, relishing in the hitches of breath as he gets closer and closer to his cock… then switches to the other knee and repeats the process. By the time he finishes, Chanyeol is panting beneath him, squirming hard and clenching his fists in frustration.

Despite Chanyeol’s teasing and calling him bossy (which he’s still kind of salty about, to be honest), Baekhyun decides to be merciful. He finally leans in and wraps his fingers around the base of Chanyeol’s erection to steady it, and even that small action has the other groaning in pleasure. Chanyeol’s so sensitive. This is going to be fun.

He starts off by kissing the tip, a gesture that has Chanyeol’s stomach in his throat in more ways than one. Baekhyun then moves to lick around the base, trying to maintain eye contact but failing miserably when the musky taste hits his tongue. It’s better than he could have expected, better than any human he’s slept with––almost enough to make him hard again. But this is about Chanyeol, not him, so he licks a fat stripe up the side and wraps his lips around the head, sucking obscenely. Chanyeol’s uncut of course, having been born however many 200 years ago, and Baekhyun absolutely loves it. He dips his tongue under the foreskin and Chanyeol moans in earnest this time, moaning even louder when he tugs it oh-so-gently between his lips.

He’s always had a _thing_ for sucking dick. Something about the weight on his tongue, the hands in his hair, the taste in his mouth has Baekhyun’s skin feeling too tight in the best kind of way. This time is no different. He lavishes Chanyeol with attention, lapping at the slit and tongueing down the shaft, even sucking on his balls, which makes the other let out a ragged breath. Chanyeol is so, so pretty like this, chest rising and falling heavily, head tossed back in bliss.

Baekhyun almost wants to do this forever, just tease Chanyeol to the point of madness, not even taking his cock fully in his mouth. He almost wants to make the other come like this, is pretty confident he can; Chanyeol’s so worked up and impossibly hard under Baekhyun’s tongue. But the slick slide when he finally lets Chanyeol fully into his mouth is incredible––and oh, now Baekhyun’s hard again. He can’t help it, Chanyeol fills up his mouth like nobody else, heavy and thick and dripping to the point where he involuntarily groans around the length. He sinks down to the base and pulls up slowly, drawing it out, torturing the man beneath him.

It barely takes any time until Chanyeol is close to begging. Baekhyun knows he wants it faster but is determined to not give in so easily, pulling off with a pop when he notices Chanyeol’s toes curling. The other groans at the sudden loss.

“You’re cute,” he observes with a smirk, one hand stroking Chanyeol lazily. Baekhyun’s been told he’s a tease in bed and is feeling particularly devilish today.

“What? Fuck, just––”

“Uh-uh.” Baekhyun rings his fingers tightly around the base and Chanyeol chokes. “No coming yet.”

Now Chanyeol’s well and truly desperate. “Baekkie, _please,_ let me come.”

Baekhyun’s never liked that nickname more than he does in that moment; he feels a rush, almost like he’s high, like he can’t get enough. It makes him want to give Chanyeol everything the other could ever want, makes him want to hold him tight and never let him go. “Yeollie, fuck, you’re so precious,” he whispers before dipping back down to take Chanyeol in his mouth again. This time he doesn’t hold back, sucking harshly until the other is a mess beneath him.

“Baek, I’m gonna––”

That was fast. His only response is a hum and a hand on Chanyeol’s thigh, still bobbing his head, and he feels lean thighs tense _hard_ beneath him before his mouth is flooded with the first spurt of thick, bitter come. Chanyeol’s looking down at him through half-lidded eyes, mouth hanging open in a perfect O, moaning deep in his chest as he watches Baekhyun milk him through it and swallow it all. He doesn’t stop until Chanyeol’s twitching in sensitivity, considering it payback for Chanyeol’s similar treatment of him earlier.

As soon as he pulls off, Chanyeol’s flat on his back with a huge sigh.

“Yeah, same,” Baekhyun chuckles, crawling up the other’s body to lay on top of him. “Am I too heavy?”

Chanyeol lifts his head and kisses him on the nose. “Nah, this is perfect.”

Baekhyun couldn’t have put it any better.

 

Not much has changed. They still watch stupid videos and mess around in the water, only now with the added bonus of getting each other off. They don’t have sex, though, some unspoken agreement passing between them that it would make things more complicated. Neither of them minds, as their arrangement works out well anyway. 

Baekhyun realizes with a start one July day that Chanyeol’s his new best friend. He’s closer to him than Jongdae, never hesitating to tell him his most ridiculous work stories or go into way too much detail his weird experiences on the train. It’s when Chanyeol is guffawing about a dog peeing on a lady’s bag, laughter ringing through the forest, that it really clicks. Chanyeol’s dumb and loud and a prankster and sometimes shy and Baekhyun may just be a little bit in love.

He comes by every Saturday, and even some Sundays, without fail and notices that the path to the spring is getting more and more worn thanks to his visits; he no longer has to bend under branches or avoid thorny plants. It warms something deep inside of him to know there’s proof of his devotion, of Chanyeol’s existence.

 

“My death day is coming up soon.”

Baekhyun is taken aback. They’d never talked about Chanyeol’s death outside of the one time, and the sudden announcement as they lounge on the grass catches him off guard.

“Um… congrats?” Fuck. That was a really, really stupid thing to say.

Luckily Chanyeol takes it in stride, laughing graciously. “Thanks, I guess. It’s gonna be next Monday.” The ghost hesitates, suddenly looking insecure. “Sorry, I don’t really know why I’m telling you this. It’s not a big deal.”

“No, no, I’m glad you told me. I’ll come up and hang out with you, okay?”

Chanyeol’s jaw drops. “What? No, you have work.”

“So?”

“Baek, I’m not letting you skip work.”

“Hmm, last I checked I’m an adult and can do whatever I want.”

“But––”

Baekhyun holds up a finger to cut Chanyeol off, then pulls out his phone and dials a number. It rings twice before someone picks up.

“Hey, Jongin.”

Chanyeol starts. _The_ Jongin? As in Baekhyun's boss Jongin? Oh hell no. He scrambles over on his hands and knees to try to wrench the phone out of Baekhyun’s hands, but trips over a root and faceplants onto the grass.

Baekhyun tries to stifle his laughter as he continues. “What? Oh, yeah, sorry, I was just calling to say I’m very sorry, but I can’t come in next Monday. Yeah, next Monday the seventh. Uh-huh. Uh, family emergency. Yeah, everything’s fine, thanks for asking.”

By this point Chanyeol has managed to climb on top of Baekhyun and is attempting to wrestle the phone out of his grip. It’s not until he finds himself pinned flat on his back that he remembers something about Baekhyun’s many years of hapkido training.

The shorter covers the phone mouthpiece. “Resistance is futile,” he whispers with a self-satisfied smirk before returning to his phone call. Fucking nerd.

“What was that? Sorry, bad connection. Oh, yeah, that’d be great. Yep. Yes. Thank you so much, sorry again. Alright, see you this Monday. Bye-bye.”

He hangs up looking way too pleased as the taller struggles beneath him.

“See you _next_ Monday.”

Chanyeol just groans.

Baekhyun leans down and kisses him.

 

“Baek!” The familiar greeting rings out and Baekhyun feels his heart soar. It’s a gorgeous late summer morning, light shining down in thin beams from the treetops. What a great day to not be at work.

“Hey Chanyeol!” He walks into the clearing and sets down his backpack on a rock, then turns around to see the ghost suddenly right behind him. He barely flinches anymore. Strong arms wrap around him in a bone-crushing hug, bringing instant coolness to Baekhyun’s skin; he tries not to sigh in pleasure and fails miserably.

Chanyeol releases him and smiles down at him, eyes extra sparkly today. “You came.”

“Of course I did, dummy. I already took the day off work, it’d be stupid to not take advantage of it.”

“Well, I mean, you could’ve just done something else instead of coming here.”

Baekhyun scoffs. “Yeah, sure. As if watching The Shining for the seventh time or getting wine drunk with Jongdae would’ve been preferable to this. Here, check it out.” He bends over and unzips his backpack, pulling out a small cake and some sticks of incense. “I hope you’re okay with matcha. I was thinking, uh, maybe I could make an offering for you? Since it’s your death day and all. I’d feel weird doing an all-out jesa since I’m not your descendant or anything, but I figured this would be cool? Maybe? You can say no if you want, I don’t know, maybe this is kinda––”

Baekhyun’s suddenly cut off by a mouth on his; Chanyeol is leaning down and kissing him and it’s all he can do to not drop the cake. Neither of them are incredibly good with words, and Baekhyun thinks this is infinitely better. He kisses back just as hard and tries to put all his emotions into it, tries to tell Chanyeol that he’s worth taking a day off work, that he’s worth the expensive train tickets and miserably hot hikes and skipping Saturday morning cartoons with Jongdae.

He hopes Chanyeol gets it. From the look in his eyes when they separate, Baekhyun has a feeling he does.

“Uh, alright then,” he laughs shakily, “where should we do this?”

Chanyeol looks equally flustered. “Um, how about the ledge with the waterfall? It’d be hard to do it where I died, since that’s in the water.”

“Okay, let’s go.”

The walk up takes all of two minutes and suddenly Baekhyun is standing with Chanyeol above the clearing, looking down at the place he’s spent every Saturday for months. “Wow, our tree looks really different from here,” he says in awe. “And look, that’s the rock you were sitting on when we met!” He turns around to see Chanyeol smiling fondly at him. It’s an intimate smile, like the one he gave him when Baekhyun brought 20 pieces of fried chicken up the mountain in his backpack for them to share, only to find out Chanyeol physically can’t eat and he had to eat them all himself and cried from the spiciness.

Baekhyun feels bare.

He doesn’t say anything else, just smiles back and lays down a little blanket before placing the cake on it, then kneeling as he sticks the incense in the soft ground. He lights the sticks one by one with a lighter and the smell begins to permeate the clearing, jasmine and sandalwood mingling with the scent of damp earth. When he looks up from the task, Chanyeol’s disappeared. It’s definitely better this way, he realizes, as the solitude helps him concentrate on what he’s going to say. The ghost is just a whisper in the background, but still there, and Baekhyun finds it impossible to pretend he’s alone.

With a deep sigh he starts, bowing his head to the blanket with his hands folded in front of him. He tries not to let them shake.

“On this day, I, Byun Baekhyun, dare call upon your name. Park Chanyeol, as the year changes and the day on which you passed away has come once again, I thank the heavens for having met you. Your courage, mercy, and capacity for love render me a child in your presence. You have suffered so greatly and yet you forgive, letting me into your life without hesitation, just as I have let you into mine. You occupy my thoughts every second of every day. I want nothing more than to play League and eat pizza with you and live with you and make you mine. But I can’t. You’re trapped here and soon it’ll be winter and I can’t hike up here in three feet of snow and what happens when your spring freezes over? Doesn’t it get cold up here alone?” Baekhyun swallows around the lump in his throat and tries to take a deep breath.

“What the fuck are we doing?” His voice is so small. “How can I live my life counting down every week to Saturday? Chanyeol… I love you. I love you and if you don’t love me back then I’ll leave and never come back, but if you asked me to I’d climb this mountain every day of every year. I’ve never felt like this and to be honest, it’s scary. It’s so scary. I’m scared out of my mind that one day I’ll come up here and you’ll be gone––really gone––but it’s alright, as long as you’re at peace.”

Another deep breath. “I guess I ended up making this all about me. Sorry about that,” he laughs softly. “Dearest ancestor, Park Chanyeol, I humbly offer you this meal. Please enjoy it.”

Baekhyun raises his head and tries not to sniffle. He doesn’t expect to see Chanyeol standing in front of him, stark naked and eating a piece of cake.

“I love you too.”

Baekhyun’s frozen solid. He stares at Chanyeol, chewing happily with frosting on his chin.

“What? H-how are you––?”

Baekhyun watches with wide eyes as Chanyeol kneels slowly in front of him and bends his head forward. He’s not bowing, Baekhyun realizes, but doing something entirely different as the other brings a hand to the back of his scalp and runs his fingers through his hair.

There’s no blood.

Chanyeol looks up with stars in his eyes, and before either of them know it they’re in each other’s arms, holding tighter than they ever have and Baekhyun can’t get enough of the warm skin beneath his fingertips and warm breath tickling his neck. There’s ugly laughing and maybe some ugly crying but all of it’s ugly and the cake’s on the ground and Chanyeol’s still naked.

When they pull apart, Baekhyun can’t imagine anything more beautiful than the flush on Chanyeol’s cheeks.

 

They hike down the mountain, hand in hand just as the sun begins to set. Chanyeol’s wearing Baekhyun’s socks so his feet don’t get cut on the gravel (Baekhyun offered his shoes but there’s no way they’d fit).

“You’re gonna love Jongdae, seriously. And oh my god, you’ve never been on a train, have you? You’re gonna love that too. But first, we have to get you some clothes. Maybe you can hide in some bushes while I steal someone’s laundry?”

Chanyeol laughs loudly enough to scare a bird out of a tree. “That’s so cliche, just like some stupid anime.”

“Oh, that reminds me, I have so many anime we can watch together!”

It’s silent for a bit while Baekhyun tries to think about what to show Chanyeol first, what to tell Jongdae, what Chanyeol should eat for his first real meal in over two centuries. He must start thinking out loud at some point because Chanyeol interrupts him softly.

“Hey.”

“Yeah?” Baekhyun looks up, no longer trying to decide between kimchi jjigae and fried chicken.

“Stop thinking so hard.”

“Okay.”

Baekhyun decides on fried chicken.

**Author's Note:**

> im dELET
> 
> uh anyway i hope you enjoyed :) kudos and comments make my day (and life tbh) and feel free to scream at me as loud as u want for this fic
> 
> SERIOUS NOTE: is anyone seeing the seventeen concert in nyc on aug 27? if so comment below pls i need friends i am going alone ;_;


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